Helsinki Airport to Olympia Terminal — Private Transfer

About the Olympia Terminal and South Harbour

The Olympia Terminal sits on Olympiaranta on the western shore of the South Harbour, one of the most central and scenic spots in Helsinki. Built for the 1952 Olympic Games that gave it its name, it is today the Helsinki terminal for Tallink Silja Line's Stockholm ferries, and it could hardly be better placed: trams 2 and 3 leave from the front door, and it is about a twenty-minute walk around the harbour to the Market Square (Kauppatori) at the heart of the city.

Everything that makes central Helsinki worth seeing is close by. A short stroll brings you to the Market Square and the Old Market Hall, the Esplanadi park, the white Helsinki Cathedral and Senate Square, the red-brick Uspenski Cathedral on Katajanokka opposite, the Allas Sea Pool and the SkyWheel Helsinki, with the green seaside Kaivopuisto district just to the south. For a cruise visitor stepping ashore at the South Harbour, the city's classic sights are almost on the doorstep — and a private car opens up the rest of Helsinki and the surrounding region for the day.

The Olympia Terminal — Tallink Silja Line to Stockholm

The Olympia Terminal is the home of Tallink Silja Line's daily ferries to Stockholm, sailed by the well-known cruise ferries Silja Serenade and Silja Symphony. The terminal has check-in desks and machines, a café and waiting areas, and the trams stop right outside — though after a flight, a door-to-door car with your luggage is far simpler and more relaxing. Boarding generally opens around two hours before departure and closes about twenty minutes before sailing, so we time your pickup to bring you here with comfortable time to check in.

One useful point to know: the Olympia Terminal serves the Stockholm route. Tallink's fast ferries to Tallinn sail instead from the West Terminal in Jätkäsaari, and Viking Line's ships use the Katajanokka Terminal across the harbour. Whichever terminal your sailing uses, we will take you straight to the right one — just tell us your ship and route when you book, and we time the airport pickup to your departure and meet you on return.

The overnight cruise to Stockholm

The Helsinki–Stockholm crossing aboard the Silja Serenade or Silja Symphony is a classic of Baltic travel. The ships leave Helsinki in the late afternoon and arrive in Stockholm the next morning, sailing overnight through the beautiful Åland islands and the Stockholm archipelago. These are true cruise ferries, built around a central glass-roofed promenade lined with restaurants, shops and shows, with cabins for every budget — the journey is as much a part of the trip as the destination.

Because boarding is in the afternoon, an earlier flight pairs perfectly with an evening sailing: we collect you at the airport, and you can fill the gap with a sightseeing hour or two or a stop at your hotel before we deliver you to the terminal, relaxed and on time. The same works in reverse on the morning you arrive back from Stockholm and need to reach your hotel or the airport.

Ferries to Tallinn — what ferry and cruise travellers should know

Many visitors combine Helsinki with a trip to Tallinn, just over two hours away across the gulf, and it helps to know where those ferries leave from. Tallink's fast ferries to Tallinn sail from the West Terminal (Länsiterminaali) in Jätkäsaari, as do Eckerö Line's, while Viking Line's Viking XPRS to Tallinn sails from the Katajanokka Terminal — not from the Olympia Terminal, which serves Stockholm. The crossing is popular as a day trip: over in the morning to explore Tallinn's medieval old town, back in the evening.

For any of these sailings the practical need is the same — reaching the right terminal on time with your luggage, and getting onward when you return. We collect you from the airport or your hotel, take you to the correct terminal for your operator, track any delays, and are waiting at the quay when you come back. If you are unsure which terminal your booking uses, tell us the shipping line and we will confirm it.

Arriving in Helsinki by cruise ship — where you dock

If you are visiting Helsinki on a Baltic cruise, the quay your ship uses shapes your day. Smaller and boutique cruise ships often berth right here in the South Harbour, at the Olympia and Pakkahuone quays, or across the water at Katajanokka — all within a short walk of the Market Square. Large cruise liners, over about 215 metres and carrying most cruise passengers, dock instead at the Hernesaari quays on the south-western waterfront, around three to three-and-a-half kilometres from the centre, with shuttle buses and tram 6 into town; some ships occasionally use the West Harbour in Jätkäsaari.

Wherever you tie up, Helsinki Airport is only about 24 km away, and the historic centre clusters around the South Harbour. The real constraint on a cruise day is time, not distance: you have a fixed number of hours ashore, the ship's coach tours are large and rigidly scheduled, and ordinary taxis can be hard to find when thousands of passengers disembark together. A private car by the hour is built precisely for that situation.

Private shore excursions by the hour — skip the tour-bus crowds

For cruise passengers with a single day in port, we offer private hourly car hire with an English-speaking local driver — your own vehicle and guide for as long as you like, instead of a crowded coach on a fixed timetable. We meet you at your cruise quay, whether that is the South Harbour, Hernesaari, Katajanokka or the West Harbour, holding a name sign, and from then on the day belongs to you: you set the route, decide how long to spend at each stop, and we make certain you are back at the gangway in good time before all-aboard.

Pick the vehicle that suits your party. A Standard car or a Business Mercedes sedan is ideal for a couple or a small family; our premium Mercedes minivan (the Business Van) takes up to 8 passengers with their belongings; and the First Class Van and First Class options add extra comfort. Hourly hire begins at €65 for the first hour in a Standard car, €85 in a Business sedan and €95 in the 8-seat Business Van minivan, with each additional hour from roughly €55, €62 and €68; a typical four-hour shore excursion comes to about €230 in a Standard car, around €270 in a Business sedan and about €300 in the Business Van. Switch the booking form to "By the hour" and the exact, fixed price for your party and duration appears at once — no meter, no surprises.

Against a cruise line's own bus tour the contrast is stark: no boarding queue, no waiting on a large group at every stop, no fixed script you cannot change. You travel in a private, air-conditioned Mercedes, photograph what you actually want to see, adjust the plan as you go, and enjoy door-to-door access no coach can match. For families, for older travellers, or for anyone who values their hours ashore, it is the calmest and most efficient way to experience Helsinki — and as you pay per car rather than per person, it is often excellent value for a couple or a group.

A day ashore by private car — what you can see

A few hours with a private car shows you far more of Helsinki than walking or a bus tour allows. A classic highlights route links Senate Square and the white Helsinki Cathedral, the Uspenski Cathedral, the Market Square and the Esplanadi, the Sibelius Monument, the rock-carved Temppeliaukio Church, the Olympic Stadium and the seaside villas of Kaivopuisto, with your driver stopping at each door and waiting while you look around. Add the Design District, the Allas Sea Pool or a crossing to the UNESCO-listed Suomenlinna sea fortress and a single day fills easily.

With more time the same car carries you out of the city — to the wooden lanes and riverside of Porvoo, Finland's second-oldest town, about an hour east; to the forests and lakes of Nuuksio National Park; or to design and seaside stops around Espoo. Your driver shapes the route around your interests and your ship's all-aboard time, keeps your shopping and coats in the car between stops, and returns you to the quay with time to spare. Just tell us your ship, your date and your hours ashore when you book and we will plan the day around them.

Why book a private transfer or chauffeur with us

Whether it is a simple airport–terminal transfer or a full day of private touring, the promise is the same: a professional, English-speaking driver, a clean modern Mercedes, a name sign waiting for you, and a fixed price agreed before you travel. We have driven international visitors around Helsinki and southern Finland since 2008, we know the harbours, the ferry operators and their terminals, and we build every booking around where you are going and the clock you are keeping.

Ordinary taxis are scarcest and dearest exactly when a flight lands late or a cruise ship empties thousands of passengers onto the quay at once. A pre-booked, fixed-price car removes that uncertainty for ferry passengers and cruise visitors alike. Simply enter your pickup, your destination or your hours in the booking form — choosing "By the hour" for sightseeing — and we take care of everything else.